Severe Weather

60-inch water main break floods section of Baltimore

A huge water main broke early Wednesday morning in Baltimore City, causing water to gush through several busy streets and flood several homes and businesses, as well as causing traffic jams for commuters.

Department of Public Works crews were still working Thursday to shut down the main because they needed to make sure a nearby gas main was protected. DPW said the reduction of water flow Thursday evening also allowed them to reopen some affected street closures.

The 60-inch cast iron main broke shortly before 8 a.m. Wednesday in the middle of the intersection between Charles and 20th streets in the Charles North area of the city.

"There are cars down further on Charles that are literally half underwater. It's bad," one witness said.

DPW officials said water flowed everywhere, prompting officials to close several streets in the area. As of Thursday evening, DPW said some roads reopened as the water receded. Here are those current road conditions:

-- Charles Street from north of Penn Station to North Avenue is reopened.-- Traffic from Charles Street may go eastbound or westbound on North Avenue.-- Eastbound through traffic on North Avenue is now allowed.-- Westbound through traffic on North Avenue between St. Paul and Charles streets is not allowed at this time.-- Lanvale Street remains closed between St. Paul Street and Maryland Ave.-- Lafayette Street is now open to through traffic. -- Charles Street north of North Ave. to 21st Street now open.-- 20th Street between Maryland Ave. and St. Paul Street also remains closed.

Wednesday evening's rush hour traffic was clogged in the area, and Thursday morning's wasn't expected to be much better.

Sky Team 11 Capt. Roy Taylor said Charles Street has buckled, and mud and debris covered several blocks. WBAL-TV 11 News reporter Jennifer Franciotti said two parking lots near the break were submerged in water Wednesday morning.

"Water pressure has the ability to literally lift the asphalt which acts as a cap on the whole area. So the asphalt is puffed up and a weak spot is formed and that's where the asphalt breaks and the water comes through," said Art Shapiro with DPW.

The process was a slow one.

"This is a transmission line, and it's a gravity-feed portion of the system and because of the size of the line -- 60-inch -- the valves take several hundred turns and in order to get the valves fully closed, we have to be very cautious in how we operate them so we don't damage the valves for future use and there is a process and a method that we use in order to make sure that's done correctly," Shapiro said.

By Thursday morning, water was still flowing in the streets, but much less than before. Crews are expected to start excavations to get to the pipe, which is about 17 feet beneath the road.

Baltimore Gas and Electric spokesman Rob Gould said crews were working with the city to make sure a gas line near the break was secure. He said it's possible that crews might have to shut off gas service Thursday to individual customers, should potentially dangerous work around the water main take place.

"While we've not had a break, we don't want one to occur as the city does their repair work," Gould said.

Police on Thursday had a locksmith opening doors to unoccupied buildings so BGE crews could shut off the gas.

"We are working with BGE. We are picking the locks," a locksmith said. "We don't go inside. They're going in."

Images: 60-inch water main breaks in Baltimore

Images: 60-inch water main breaks in Baltimore

On Friday, crews work to repair the 60-inch water main break in Baltimore.

On Friday, crews work to repair the 60-inch water main break in Baltimore.

On Friday, crews work to repair the 60-inch water main break in Baltimore.

A huge water main broke early Wednesday morning in Baltimore City, causing water to flow through several busy streets.

The 60-inch main broke in the middle of the intersection between Charles and 20th streets in the Charles North area of the city.

Department of Public Works officials said water is flowing everywhere, so they're telling drivers to avoid streets in that area as best as possible.

Crews are heading to the scene to begin working on a fix. There's no word yet if any homes or businesses in the area have lost water services. There's also no timeline yet on a fix.

Firefighters went door to door Wednesday to see what effects the break caused in homes. Franciotti reported that officials said some places had anywhere from a few inches to a few feet of water in the basements. No evacuations were reported, and most businesses in the area are still open.

Gould said BGE crews shut off electricity and/or gas service on Wednesday to some homes in the area as a precaution. Gould also said anyone who comes across water in their basement should get out immediately and not touch any electrical equipment.

DPW spokesman Kurt Kocher said low water pressure and cloudy water can be expected in north central Baltimore, but no one is expected to lose water service altogether.

Kocher said there was no timeline for a fix, but residents and commuters should expect traffic to be tied up in the area for at least a few days.

The pipe that burst -- made in 1913 and installed in the 1920s -- represents one of many old pipes that have recently ruptured in the city. (See also: East Monument Street sinkhole)

"It's another indication of an old infrastructure that the mayor has talked about," said DPW Director Alfred Foxx.

Amtrak said the break closed one operating track at Penn Station on Wednesday because of water on the track. Officials said there were no cancellations, but minor delays remained possible.

Stay with WBALTV.com and WBAL-TV 11 News for more details as they become available.

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